Our goal was to buy one month of advertising space, starting a few days before the MLK holiday (January 20, this year), to coincide with our protest of the site that day. But ultimately we raised enough money to cover two months, making it possible to keep it up throughout February and beyond.

Ashley Evans is a freelance graphic designer with roots in Orange, Texas. Her love of graphic design started in the Journalism classroom at Little Cypress-Mauriceville High School in 1992. She went on to study at the University of Texas and has since worked for many globally-recognized brands including Frito-Lay, Vera Bradley, BP, and MasterCard over her 20+ year career. Whether designing, writing, or teaching she has a passion for the beauty in everyday life and is honored to support Repurpose Memorial in their efforts to make Orange a beautiful and inclusive place in celebration of all veterans.

Click here to donate to our GoFundMe campaign to post a MLK billboard across the road from the site. The billboard will celebrate Dr. King’s life and legacy and will be displayed by the date of our protest and for most of African American History Month.

Repurpose Memorial is raising money to buy one (1) month of advertising on a billboard that stands across the road from the newly erected Confederate Memorial of the Wind (see below), a monument built by the Sons of Confederate Veterans on Martin Luther King, Jr. Dr. in Orange, Texas along Interstate 10.

Artwork for the billboard (above) was created pro bono by an anonymous designer.

The City of Orange, the local business community, and even a group of local pastors have asked the Sons member who organized the monument’s construction, Granvel Block, to consider repurposing the site. But he refuses to engage in dialog.

Given the demographics of Orange and the legacy of Jim Crow there, it’s clear that the conspicuous display of the Confederate Flag doesn’t reflect or align with community values. The monument’s prominent location (along a major road that leads into town, just a few freeway stops west of the Louisiana border), makes it highly visible to drivers as they arrive in the state heading west. See the photo below, taken this week by an Orange resident.

The content of the billboard will include an appeal to local residents and drivers to ask the Sons to repurpose the site. It will also include a link to a blog I’ve created to document our efforts, RepurposeMemorial.com.

My hope is to have the ad up by the end of next week. And I have already contacted the outdoor advertising company that owns the billboard to get the artwork and ad approved.

Tracie and I have been protesting the memorial since December 2017 and we have no intention of giving up on our cause: to remind the residents of Orange (where Tracie grew up and where her family lives) that it’s socially unacceptable to display images like the Confederate Flag in such a conspicuous location and fashion, with no regard for the values and feelings of the greater community.

We cannot thank you enough for your support. We’ve had so many residents thank us publicly and privately for our protests. We are wholly convinced that we need to speak out on this issue.